Kyoto ・ Japanese cooking class - Kyotouzuki.com

Kisaragi : Feel a sign of spring!

2012-02-01T00:05:00.001+09:00

Uzuki in Kisaragi:February

Thank you so very much for thinking of Japan and helping us in many ways!

Let's have a happy cooking session and share an enjoyabe time together!

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class

Please contact at cooking@kyotouzuki.com
If you like, please visit the website
kyotouzuki.com and
Pottery Uzuki blogpage

Aimee

Ivan 　　　 →

Chris & Renee

Their dessert 　　→

Here is the letter from Michele Ouellet --
Hello Emi,
My sister-in-law Carmen left Japan today; everyday that she was here we spoke about last week's class and tried to remember details of the experience. First, it was very interesting to be inside a Japanese kitchen. I have Japanese friends but I have never gone past the dining room! It was also nice to watch you work, how you orchestrate all these parallel cooking activities so that everything is ready at the same time. Some of the ingredients we used were new to us, for instance the sansho peppers, those really blew our mind with their numbing, their tingling and their explosions of taste; getting some in the kitchen is very high on both our to-do lists. Each dish was excellent, the combinations were lovely. The atmosphere in the kitchen was pleasant. Carmen has bought Japanese cookbooks since, and my own interest in cooking new dishes was stimulated by this meeting.
Sincerely,
Michele Ouellet

winter kinton(sweets) I named 'a slight sigh of spring'!
ingredients: white bean, Yamato-imo/yam potato with sugar and just a little matcha/powder green tea & kintoki carrot

Simmered koya-dofu & yuba(both tofu products) with vegetable amber sauce
the photo by Erin & Simon of Never Ending Voyage

from the left:Tom, Jack, Victoria and Lily

from the left:Will, Siena and Harry

A Happy Dragon Year 2012!

2012-01-01T00:37:00.002+09:00

Wishing you all a very happy Dragon Year, 2012!

Thank you so very much for thinking of Japan and helping us in many ways!

♪♪Cooking & eating is delightful♪♪, in my favourite fairy tale, 'Guri and Gura' sing this song. I do feel the same!
And cooking and eating together with somebody is much much more enjoyable!!

I'm looking forward to having a happy cooking session with you this year!

Please contact at cooking@kyotouzuki.com
If you like, please visit the website
kyotouzuki.com and
Pottery Uzuki blogpage

Osechi:New Year's foods

from the top-left, clockwise
kazunoko-prepared herring roe
gomame-tiny dried anchovies
tataki gobou-sesame dressed burdock root
kuromame- sweet black soy beans
in the center sweet vinegar lotus root

Kyo- zouni:Kyoto style New Year's soup

Mushi-zushi:Kyoto style steamed sushi

Kuri kinton/chestnut sweet for the New Year's
Tai-meshi:cooked rice with seabream

Osechi ryori/New Year's ingredients from the left:renkon/lotus root, kintoki carrot, kashiraimo and kuwai

from the left: ebiimo, burdockroot, kintoki carrot, gomame, yuzu, kuwai, yamanoimo and renkon/lotus root

Aymeric & Nikky
pin up en cuisine
Here is the letter from Nikky -- Dear Emi, We're just arriving in Paris. This trip was amazing and now I can say that "Nihon daisuki!" We really enjoyed the cooking class with you and we hope to be back in Japan soon.

Daikon radish & Kintoki carrot salad a la New Year's
The photo by Kate Good

Jan-Willem & Eline

Uzuki in Shiwasu : Thank you so very much!

2011-12-01T00:09:00.041+09:00

I thank you all so much for coming to my kitchen and sharing the enjoyable time together this year!

Also thank you so much for thinking of Japan and helping us in many ways!

Please visit the website kyotouzuki.com
Please contact at cooking@kyotouzuki.com

Mary Ray Cate has sent
the beautiful Haiku poetry for the holiday season.

On the hillside lie
Grey skeletons of pinons
Cradling new green trees.

Here is the letter from Stephanie-

Vicki and I would just like to let you know, how very much we enjoyed the afternoon cooking with you. I would also like to say how much I appreciated the extent you went to for myself, by showing and cooking vegetarian foods. Your meal was amongst the best food I have tasted in Japan, and I will try these recipes for myself when I get home. Thank you once again for your hospitality.

If you like,
Pottery Uzuki blogpage as well

more dishes here!

Here are winter dishes by Magali & Jeremie
the top: fried namafu(raw wheat gluten) with shiro miso sauce
the center: brochette of beef-roll, shiro negi(similar to leek, but thinner & softer) and ginkgo nuts

at the bottom:
renkon & ebi o-yaki; Japanese style lotus root galette or lotus root pancake with prawns!

Their pretty nama-yatsuhashi sweets

Magali & Jeremie

Maia's o-bento:boxed meal, she loves Kyoto style o-bento!

Horenso no goma-ae:dressed salad of spinach

Month of autumn tints : Shimotsuki

2011-11-02T09:33:00.061+09:00

Autumn rice: cooked rice with mushrooms(shimeji, eringi and shiitake) & crabmeat

Let's have a cooking session, have an enjoyable time together!

Please have a look at
Momijigari
and Fukiyose

Kuri-kinton:chestnut sweet

Uzuki in Shimotsuki:November

Thank you so very much for thinking of Japan and helping us in many ways.

Please visit the website kyotouzuki.com
Please contact at cooking@kyotouzuki.com

If you like,
Pottery Uzuki blogpage as well

more dishes here!

Kikuka-kabu: sweet vinegar pickled turnip - Looks like a chrysanthemum

Clare & Michael

on the right: kuri-gohan/cooked rice with chestnuts
on the left: buri no misozuke/miso marinated yellowtail

Kaminazuki : Month of gods

2011-10-01T00:06:00.101+09:00

Let's have a cooking session, have an enjoyable time together!

more dishes here!

Uzuki in October
vase: 'Keikan-ko' flower vase
flower: Murasaki-shikibu

Thank you so very much for thinking of Japan and helping us in many ways.

Please visit the website kyotouzuki.com
Please contact at cooking@kyotouzuki.com

If you like,
Pottery Uzuki blogpage as well

Simmered vegetables & koyadofu with crab-meat sauce
the photo by Christopher

Tom loves chestnuts, Uriel loves all Japanese foods!

Fresh fig & boiled okura salad with sesame-miso(soybean paste)sauce

Kuri no shibukawa-ni: chestnut with syrup
Please have a look at
kuri-kinton

Helena & Jan

Matcha/green tea Shiratama-dango/mochi balls with grapes & red bean paste

an autumn salad: shimeji mushrooms, kaki/persimmons and grapes

Nagatsuki : Month of full moon!

2011-09-03T23:39:00.045+09:00

Let's have a cooking session, have an enjoyable time together!

Uzuki in September

Thank you so very much for thinking of Japan and helping us in many ways.

Please visit the website kyotouzuki.com
Please contact at cooking@kyotouzuki.com

If you like,
Pottery Uzuki blogpage as well

Tsukimi Dango/tiny dumplings of rice cake for the harvest moon
We traditionally love tsukimi/moon viewing and have been fascinated with the moon. Particularly the moon in autumn.
It is said the most beautiful full moon appears in mid-September; on August 15th of the luner calendar. It is called Chushu no meigetsu/the harvest moon.
Then we offer the moon autumn pampas grass, dango and share the autumn harvest with the moon.

'Uzuki', my cooking class name is the old name for April, to be precise, the fourth month of the lunar calendar.

Also I named it 'Uzuki' with the meaning of 'a rabbit (u) and the moon (zuki)', as ancient Japanese believed rabbits live on the moon and pound rice cakes.

Autumn Nanbanzuke/Japanese style escabeche
ingredients: salmon, shimeji mushrooms and eggplant/aubergine

Red shiso's ear It's pretty!

Anouk & Kevin

Claire & Paul's early autumn dishes

Hazuki : Month of Mukuge

2011-08-02T23:29:00.046+09:00

Let's have a cooking session, have an enjoyable time together!

Uzuki in Hazuki/August
pottery: iron glazed tube flower vase
flower: Soutan-mukuge

Thank you so very much for thinking of Japan and helping us in many ways.

Please visit the website kyotouzuki.com
Please contact at cooking@kyotouzuki.com

If you like,
Pottery Uzuki blogpage as well

Megan & Stephanie

Katharine & Samuel

Fuzuki : Month of star dust, 2011

2011-07-01T00:11:00.060+09:00

Let's have a cooking session, have an enjoyable time together!

Uzuki in Fuzuki/July
flower: tora-no-o, kikyou and rikyu-so

Thank you so very much for thinking of Japan and helping us in many ways.

Please visit the website kyotouzuki.com
Please contact at cooking@kyotouzuki.com

If you like,
Pottery Uzuki blogpage as well

From the left: Stephanie, Alysa and Kimberly
They all love Japanese music, dramas and foods!
Please have a look at Matcha Shiratama Dango

Poonam & Adrien's seafood 'shumai'

From the left: Heather, Karen, John and Linda

Gomazu-ae is Japanese-style dressed salad made with sesame seeds (or paste)
and rice vinegar.
Sesame (goma) is rich in minerals, vitamin E, vitamin B. It is said to lower blood
pressure, regulate cholesterol levels and have anti-aging properties. Rice
vinegar (kome-zu) is said to reduce fatigue, and clean the blood. It also has an antiseptic effect which can prevent food poisoning. Both goma and kome-zu are super for our health, particularly in the summer!
This month I will introduce 2 different dressings using these
ingredients. Made with fresh summer vegetables, these salads will boost your health and help cool the body during the hot days of summer.
Boiled aubergine/eggplant with sesame creamy dressing ↑

Ingen no gomazu-ae;sesame dressed green beans ↑

Aaron and Henry
Henry is wearing 'Gegege no Kitaro' T-shirt! (on the right)

Their vegetarian dishes

Nagoshi no Harae : Summer Purification, 2011

2011-06-30T00:34:00.013+09:00

Nagoshi no Harae at Okazaki Shrine on June 30th

Home-made 'Minazuki'

Minazuki : special sweet rice cake for Nagoshi no Harae (the old ritual)
This triangle-shape expresses a piece of ice. In the old lunar calendar June is the mid-summer. People could hardly get ice in the summer time, those days. In stead of ice, they had the sweet, ‘minazuki’ which feels ice, asking for coolness.

The sweet red beans are used for the topping.
Those days Japanese people believed red beans protect us from evils such as diseases, disasters and so on.

Still now we have Minazuki on June 30th every year.

Please have a look at Nagoshi no Harae, 2009

Minazuki : Month of water & hydrangeas

2011-06-01T00:00:00.086+09:00

Uzuki in June, 2011

The East Japan earthquake happened on March 11th.
My deep thoughts are with all the people in the devastated areas.

Also we thank you so very much for thinking of Japan and helping us in many ways.

Please visit the website kyotouzuki.com
Please contact at cooking@kyotouzuki.com

If you like,
Pottery Uzuki blogpage as well

Karon and Piers

Red shiso/perilla(herb) juice : fresh and pretty!

Perrine →

Laurent　↓

Mary and Robert

Please have a look at EAT DRINK KYOTO 'Seasonal Japansee recipes' page
Tai no Oshi-zushi:
Boxed sushi of seabream with kinome (sansho baby leaves)

Martina and Claig

Classic Kyoto summer dish: Kamonasu no Dengaku/Grilled kamonasu(eggplant/aubergine) with Shiromiso sauce

Their 'Kamonasu no
Dengaku' looks like French cuisine!
↑
Marion and Christophe

Umeshu:Japanese plum liqueur
Please have a look at
umeshu in 2010 and umeshu in 2009 as well

Jemma and Stuart

Green pea rice balls

Early summer miso soup: fuki/butterbur & yuba/soymilk skin
garnish: myoga/ginger (flower) buds

Nanbanzuke: Japanese style escabeche of horse mackerel

Daikon radish salad

Just in the season!
on the left: sansho (Japanese peppers) This has fabulous flavour!
on the right: amazu shoga/sweet pickled ginger

Basic for breakfast : pickled vegetables & miso soup
Nukazuke:rice bran pickled vegetables ↑

Miso soup with asari/tiny clams

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class.

Satsuki : Month of Verdure

2011-05-01T00:00:00.049+09:00

Uzuki in Satsuki: May

The East Japan earthquake happened on March 11th.
My deep thoughts are with all the people in the devastated areas.

Also we thank you so very much for thinking of Japan and helping us in many ways.

Old Otsu-e hanging-scroll: Fuji musume/Wisteria girl

Please contact at cooking@kyotouzuki.com

If you like, please visit the website kyotouzuki.com and
Pottery Uzuki blogpage

Please have a look at EAT DRINK KYOTO 'Seasonal Japansee recipes' page

From the left: Thomas & Amy, Robert and Daryl
They all love cooking very much!

Takenoko gohan : cooked rice with bamboo shoots

Please have a look at Kinome-ae

Takenoko : bamboo shoots

Boil bamboo shoots with rice bran & red pepper to make the flavor better.
If you could get a new born, very fresh one, there's no need even to boil!

Kinome/sansho(kind of pepper) baby leaves
I really love Kinome.
We use them as a garnish and as an herb. Now is just the season; we can only enjoy them before the leaves grow too big. Kinome has a distinct flavour and an excellent aroma!

May brings lots of new vegetables, they're all so fresh.

New onion stew a la Uzuki; Japanese farci?
New onions are soft and sweet. Simmer in dashi(Japanese broth) with a little mirin(sweet rice wine) and soysauce, try not to destroy onion's mild flavour.

Popular home-cooked dish; korokke (Japanese croquette)
Spring korokke using fresh green peas & new potatoes, with Kyoto shiro-miso sauce

Spring deep-fried dish with broth soup - the photo by Louise
ingredients: tai/seabream, fuki/Japanese butterbur, takenoko/bamboo shoots

Kusa(yomogi)-mochi

Yomogi(mugwort); spring grass, this has fabulous fragrance!
They are from my neighborhood!

Kyoto, Japan : full of Sakura with lots of Hope!

2011-04-01T00:06:00.119+09:00

The East Japan earthquake happened on March 11th.
My deep thoughts are with all the people in the devastated areas.

Right now I've received lots of emails from people over the world that tell
they are with us, Japan.

Thank you so very much for thinking of Japan and helping us in many ways.

Please contact at cooking@kyotouzuki.com

Please visit the website kyotouzuki.com

Pottery Uzuki blogpageas well

Now Sakura is in full-bloom all over Kyoto!

Sakura in my neighborhood.

Haru no o-bentou: Boxed lunch for Sakura viewing picnic

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!

from the right: Louise, Dimitri and Anjuna with their pretty dessert!

Sakura-mochi; a Kyoto spring classic
Sakura- mochi is a (Domyoji) rice sweet with sweet red bean paste inside, wrapped with the salt pickled sakura/cherry leaf.
The slight saltiness of sakura leaves makes a good contrast with
the sweet red bean paste.
Generally the pink colouring is used for the mochi rice dough to show sakura's pink, however, I prefer not to use artificial additives.

on the left: Domyoji rice flour, on the right: red bean paste
salt pickled sakura(cherry) leaf

Mame-gohan:green pea rice with salt pickled sakura (cherry blossom)

Nanohana (rape blossoms) no sumiso-ae: boiled nanohana with Kyoto shiro-miso(sweet & mild type soy bean paste) & rice vinegar sauce

Tiny clams & nanohana(rape blossoms) sumiso-ae (shiro miso sauce)

Annette with her spring dishes!

Hamaguri no shiro-miso wan:clam shiro-miso soup with nanohana(rape blossoms)

Shellfish & nanohana is the best spring combination!

Creamy beige Kyoto shiro-miso is sweeter, milder and smoother than the other kinds of Japanese miso(soy bean paste). Made with the double amount of fermented rice, this miso has a sweetness that is mild and natural.

Pastel green soup
Ingredients: green peas, Kyoto shiro miso(soy bean paste), yuba(soy milk skin)
and combu broth
sakura shaped daikon-radish for the garnish
This is very much a spring soup-dish!

Strawberry flavoured shiratama-mochi balls with red bean paste & fresh strawberries

Strawberry-mochi: my original sweet, mashed fresh strawberry gives nice and fruity flavour

Kyoto sweet: Nama-Yatsuhashi
rice crepe with red bean paste, cinnamon & soy bean powder

Fuki(kind of Japanese butterbur or rhubarb, celerly) rolled with yuba(soymilk skin)

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　Creamy tofu dressed fuki

spring steamed dish
ingredients: tai/seabream, nanohana/rape blossoms, shiitake mushrooms with grated daikon radish

Haru daikon: spring daikon radish
Grating daikon radish with 'oroshi-gane'(a copper grater)

Yayoi : early spring flavour

2011-03-01T00:20:00.050+09:00

The Tohoku-Kanto earthquake happened on March 11th.
My deep thoughts are with all the people in the devastated areas.

Right now I've received lots of emails from people over the world that tell
they are with us, Japan.

Thank you so very much for thinking of Japan and helping us in many ways.

Uzuki in Yayoi/March

Please contact at cooking@kyotouzuki.com

If you like, please visit the website kyotouzuki.com and
Pottery Uzuki blogpage

Jenny's spring chirashi-zushi/scattered sushi: the photo by Jenny Hall
ingredients: kodai no sasazuke/sweet vinegared tiny seabream, anago, prawns,nanohana, mitsuba etc..
Haru no chirashi-zushi: spring scattered sushi
Rape blossoms convey spring!

Please have a look at Momo no Settuku and Spring is hereⅰ
Also please have a look at Fukiyose chirashizushi

From the right: Nathalie, Jodie & Roy

from the right: Nigel & Robyn, Isabel & Bennett

Kisaragi : Feel the coming of Spring!

2011-02-01T00:20:00.056+09:00

Renkon-mushi: a Kyoto winter special; steamed lotus root dish

Camellia in the antique Tamba suribachi/pottery grinding bowl

Please contact at cooking@kyotouzuki.com
If you like, please visit the website kyotouzuki.com and
Pottery Uzuki blogpage

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!

Renkon-mushi
In winter we make steamed dish a lot to warm us.
One of my favourite steamed dishes is Renkon-mushi/steamed lotus root dish.
If you're freezing now in Kyoto, or in any other places, please try Renkon-mushi!

Lotus root has a lovely texture: crispy & crunchy and yet somehow soft and a little sticky. It contains a lot of Vitamin C, B1 and B2, that is good to prevent colds.
　　　　
Renkon-mushi is made with grated lotus root + some fish/seafoods and mushrooms etc.. If you'd like vegetarian's, you can use yuba/soy milk skin or namafu/raw wheat gluten instead of fish/seafoods, then it becomes a perfect vegetarian dish. It is served in a hot thick soup with a little bit of grated ginger.
It will warm you up quickly!

Also lotus roots can be prepared in several ways. Please have a look at Duo of lotus root.

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　↓　　　　　

Samantha & Jean-Christian

Winter dessert: o-zenzai/hot sweet red bean soup with toasted mochi(rice cake)

Typical obentou/boxed lunch foods:rice ball & egg-roll

from the right: Esther & Anthony, Martina & Darren
Esther does pretty cake decorations

Beth & Lee

Beth's Nikujaga : Japanese style beef & potato stew

A Happy Rabbit Year 2011!

2011-01-01T00:01:00.068+09:00

Very best wishes for a lovely rabbit year 2011!

Uzuki on New Year's 2011

Wishing you all peace, love and happiness in 2011.

I'm looking forward to having a happy cooking session with you this year!

Please contact at cooking@kyotouzuki.com
If you like, please visit the website
kyotouzuki.com and
Pottery Uzuki blogpage

Shiromiso zouni: New Year's soup a la Kyoto

Gindara(fish) no misozuke: grilled miso-pickled fish

New Year's chirashi-zushi; scattered sushi
topping: ikura(salmon eggs), renkon(lotus root), kuromame(black soy bean)etc.

Kikuka-kabu

from the right: Agnes, Sam, Dana and Maddie

from the right: Sally & John, Angela & Melinda

　　　　　　　　　　　　　↑
The new year 2011 came with a lot of snow in Kyoto.
Painter & Haiku poet, Mary Ray Cate sent the beautiful picture with these lovely haiku for the New Year's! 　　

out of soft white fog
orange rocks, orange willows
glow in the new snow

woods transformed by snow
beaver glides across the pond
something white in mouth

Sheri & Steve, Jacob & Adam
Please have a look at Sheri's travel blog
They love mochi sweets
↓
Mochi/rice cake with red bean paste

Kinako/soy bean powder
a very good by-player for Japanese sweets!

Tai-meshi: cooked rice with tai/seabream

Old brocade 'obi' (wide sash) for the New Year's. Around 75 years old.

Mushi-zushi: Steamed sushi, sushi for winter

Kagami-mochi

simmer black soy beans for around 2 days

New Year's sweet-joyo manju
'Crane'

Cranes are the symbol of longevity
Ingredients-Yamato yam potato, rice flour,
kintoki carrot, red beans and sugar

The color combination of red & white is the symbol of happiness & longevity, and used for the New Year's dishes a lot.

Thank you so much!

2010-12-11T15:46:00.036+09:00

Isabelle, Sabina and Jerome
the photo by Giacinto

I thank you all so much for coming to my kitchen and having the wonderful cookig sessions together this year!
Every lesson I had a very good time.

Wishing you all the lovely and peaceful holidays!

Once again thank you so much!!

Please visit the website
kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!

Yuzu:one Japanese citrus
This has fantastic fragrance
Yuzu-yu: hot yuzu tea

Carrie

from the right:Joyce & Nancy, Richard & Natasha

from the left:Julie & Lisa, Natalia & Eric

Ewa, Anne & Clare

Here is the letter from Elaine --

Hello Emi,

I just wanted to thank you for our wonderful cooking class we had with you. We all agree that it was one of our highlights to Japan and definitely the most delicious meal we had while on holidays.

I hope to come back to Kyoto and doing another class with you some time soon.

Regards
Elaine Phillip Marlena and Serena Stekhoven

Shawna, Charissa and Greg

Jemma & Charles

Shungiku mochi
The outside: mochi rice flour, shungiku/green leaves and sugar and kinako/soy bean powder dusted
The inside: red beans and sugar

Emilie and Gerald with their kinton

Shirohana mame/white bean
Azuki/red bean

Uzuki in Shiwasu : the beginning of winter

2010-12-01T00:04:00.019+09:00

Uzuki in December

Please visit the website
kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!

Please have a look at winter flavors as well

From the right: Lisa, Mary and Tracy
with sweet potato& kintoki carrot soup
They love Japanese vegetables!

Yuzu kabura: pickled turnips with yuzu(citrus) flavour
My favourite winter pickles!

ko-kabura:small turnips

Momijigari : Autumn leaves

2010-11-04T20:55:00.064+09:00

Momiji/red maple leaves in my neighborhood 　　→

Please visit the website
kyotouzuki.com

on the right: chawanmushi: steamed savoury egg custard
on the left: autumn rice with chestnuts & ginkgo nuts

from the right:Jane, Susan, Gerald and Petra

Autumn tints at Enkoji-Temple, my favorite place! 　　→

Here is the letter with her beautiful 'Haiku' from Mary Ray Cate

Red maple, big bell
In search of calligraphy
We meet gentle priest.

Three persimmon leaves
Green, red, gold with orange spots
Gifts from my new friend

Dear Emi-san,
Luke and I enjoyed our cooking class very much. Thank you for a unique and delicious experience. Luke and I look forward to trying the recipes you gave us at home. Ogenki de.

Kuri-kinton:my favourite chestnut sweets with matcha(powder green tea)
↓
↑

Please have a look at Kuri-kinton 2009 as well

Duo of lotus root: lotus root balls and chips
Try with sansho (Japanese pepper) or shichimi (Japanese mixed spice)

Kuri no shibukawani: chestnuts(with inner skin) with syrup
　　　　　　　　　 ↑

Please visitautumn/winter flavorsas well

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!

Hing, Lou, Jocelyn and Nguyet

Their aki no obento:autumn boxed meal

Yuzu(citrus) flavoured Kyoto miso sauce dish
Kyoto miso(soy bean paste) is sweeter, milder and smoother than the other kinds of Japanese miso. Its color is creamy beige. Made with fermented rice, it has the mild and natural sweetness.

with simmered satoimo/taro potatoes

Marlena & Serena 　　　　　　　　　↓

Marlena & Serena in Maiko-san kimono costumes!

Fukiyose : Blown by the Autumn wind

2010-11-01T00:11:00.022+09:00

Fukiyose chirashizushi

'Fukiyose' is an autumn view; leaves, nuts etc. blown and gathered by the autumn wind make beautiful scenes. I love this scenery that seems the wind is playing with plants!

This month's chirashizushi (scattered sushi) is Fukiyose chirashi.

Chirashi is a typical home-cooked style of sushi; mixed sushi-rice with cooked ingredients + topping with seasonal fish, vegetables, egg omelettes etc.. You can enjoy different and seasonal chirashizushi through the year.

In November, please make Fukiyose chirashi with autumn ingredients, like you paint the Kyoto autumn landscapes!

Uzuki in November
　　　　　　　　　　
Please visit the website
kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

　　　　　　　　　　　　　↓

Autumn is here to stay!

2010-10-28T21:52:00.018+09:00

Please visit the website
kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Lexi & her aunt, Connie
They are wearing Lexi's handmade mufflers, with antique Kimono textile. So beautiful!

burdock roots, kintoki carrots and sweet potatoes

↓

Autumn kakiage tempura

Alexandru is making kimpira gobo 　　　　　→

Kimpira gobo:light fried burdock & kintoki carrot seasoned with raw sugar, soysauce, red pepper

Dashimaki : Kyoto style egg omelette

2010-10-24T22:16:00.021+09:00

Please visit the website
kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Dashimaki: Kyoto style egg omelette

Jean-Paul with his perfect dashimaki!

Dashimaki is one of the Kyoto specialities. As this contains lots of dashi/broth, it's very soft & mild. My favourite!

Kaminazuki : fascinated with wild flowers & chirping insects

2010-10-01T00:22:00.045+09:00

Uzuki in October

Please visit the website
kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Magalie & Maxime, Gillian & Joseph

Patty and Tom

Lovely days have continued here, in Kyoto!
Enjoy the fresh and nice autumn vegetables and fruits, they are blessings from the autumn!

Pumpkin balls with vegetable amber sauce
ingredients: pumpkin, dried shiitake(mushrooms) and carrot
garnish: grated ginger

Autumn salad with sesame creamy dressing
1 - fresh fig, nagaimo yam, myoga(ginger flower bud), mitsuba(trefoil)

2 - mizuna(leaves), pumpkin and shimeji(mushrooms)

3 - persimmons, lotusroots, grapes and mitsuba(trefoil)

One of the classic steamed dishes, Chawanmushi:steamed savoury egg custard

Gomadofu:sesame creamy tofu
One of the classic temple vegetarian dishes

Megan with her mom, Tanya

Zoe with her autumn rice →

Nagatsuki : Autumn is coming!

2010-09-01T22:03:00.056+09:00

Uzuki in September

Please visit the website
kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Adam, Kathleen, Steve and Julie

Tony, Courtney, Amanda and Tim →

Kuri-gohan:cooked rice with chestnuts

Joe with his 'tsukimi'sweet

Shiratama dango with autumn fruits

Cooked rice with sweet potatoes

Tsukimi-dango a la Uzuki: plain, kuri-an(chestnut paste) and azuki-an(red bean paste) dango

Happily it's getting a little cooler here, in Kyoto. The 'bell-ringing' crickets have started singing and the air feels clear, that means autumn is here!
Let's start enjoying the autumn harvest with thanks to the nature.

Takikomi-gohan: cooked rice with tiny dried shrimps, gobo/burdock roots and carrots

Rice dish is one of the autumn blessings.
New rice has very good flavour & moisture.

Omusubi/rice balls with nori seaweeds

Juliet, Emily and Mat

Teelka & Niko, Penny & Mikko

Hazuki : Month of High Summer

2010-08-01T00:08:00.046+09:00

Edamame-dofu

Please visit the website
kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Anne-sophie, Ashley, Rebecca and Bipana

Covina & Steven, Laura & Marco
Steven's Daifuku;mochi rice cake

Leslie, Beth, Thomas Ariel and Joey

Keely & Roger

Alejandra & Jean-Francois are making cucumber & crab meat salad

Hiyashi chawan-mushi; chilled savoury egg custard with crab meat & edamame sauce

Ella, Chihiro and James

Kigo (season word) is one of the important elements on classical Japanese poetry like waka or haiku. Edamame can be one of the best kigo for the summer poetry as we find and have the fresh one during the summer in Japan.

Edamame is young green soybeans still in their pod.
Its color is bright green and the flavor is light.

Boiled edamame is the best partner for cold beer in summer in Japan.
It has become more and more popular in some other countries as well.

Edamamedofu is a different type of tofu. The ingredients are edamame and kuzu/kind of starch made from Japanese kuzu vine. Edamame contains high protein and kuzu gives us good blood circulation, thus they are both healthy!

Boiled and strained edamame with kuzu starch makes the texture very smooth.
Served with cold broth sauce and a little wasabi, chilled edamamedofu is really nice and fresh!

If you have this, you would feel much like making summer haiku!

Summertime simmered dish
namayuba;fresh soy milk skin, koya-dofu;freeze-dried tofu and kikuza-kabocha;pumpkin
with sudachi(citrus) zest

Allison & Ryan love Kyoto summer dishes!

Judy is making summer sweet, 'kuzu-zakura'

Wendy & Kashini are making chimaki-zushi

Hamo no yuba maki; soy milk skin roll of hamo(fish)

Fuzuki : Month of Gion Festival

2010-07-01T00:05:00.092+09:00

Uzuki in July
Tettusen in 'Oranda'
style vase

This year's Gion Matsuri chimaki from Naginata hoko(float); Chimaki keeps us away from evils like disease throughout the year.

Kyoto summer special 'Hamo no Oshizushi' on my grandma's ko(old)imari plate
This recipe is also my grandma's

During July we have the biggest festival, Gion Matsuri/Gion Festival.
Gion Matsuri has another name, 'hamo matsuri' as we have a lot of hamo (fish) dishes during the festival. Hamo is pike conger, a long fish, looks like an eel. But the taste is quite diferrent from eels. I like eel dishes, but I love hamo dishes much better. Hamo has a sophisticated taste, not greasy.

Please visit Gion Matsuri : Hamo Matsuri as well

Please visit the website as well
kyotouzuki.com
Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Green tea shiratama dango with red bean paste,
summer fruits and soy bean powder

Hisui nasu: boiled aubergine/eggplant salad
Hisui is jade in Japanese, as the colour looks like jade

Tracy's beautiful hisui nasu!

Rebecca with summer vegetarian dishes

Amy & Nic

Sally is making the clear soup, Botan-hamo

She's good at making a beautiful hamo peony!

Kyoto classic hamo soup:botan-hamo(peony flower soup)as the fillet of hamo in the soup looks like a peony flower

a kyoto summer special : Kamonasu no Dengaku:Fried aubergine/eggplant with
Kyoto miso sauce
Hamo ↑

Fresh wasabi

Jessica is making Kuzu
zakura:cool sweet
↓

kuzu zakura : kuzu starch + red bean paste

Joshua is making 'Yakitori'
Jessica and Joshua both love cooking!

Tom & Mike : nice brothers love Japanese foods! →

Caden Sachiko & Justus Kazuo with their mom

Emilie & Raymond, Geetha & Romesh →

Kakiage tempura of scallops & mitsuba leaves

Minazuki : Month of Water

2010-06-26T23:13:00.023+09:00

Please have a look at Nagoshi no Harae, 2009

On the last day of June we have Minazuki rice cake, Minazuki is Japanese old name for June, which means the month of water.

If you like, please visit the website as well
kyotouzuki.com
Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Nankoubai: Japanese Ume fruits

This year's umeshu ↑
Please have a look at
umeshu in 2009 as well

Sansho (Japanese pepper)

Minazuki : June with rain

2010-06-01T00:03:00.064+09:00

Uzuki in Minazuki/June

If you like, please visit my website as well
kyotouzuki.com
Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Ngaire
Ngaire's 'Sake no Oshizushi'(salmon boxed sushi)
Sulin is making 'Tai no Oshizushi' (seabream boxed sushi)

Kate, Jeanne, Mike and Andrew

Andrew's 'Nasu no Dengaku' - on the right

Maria & Sam, Rachel & Jonathan

Classic of summertime noodle dish: Tenzaru/cold soba with tempura

Sylvie, Matt and Marcs

Samia & Jimmy

Isabelle & Jerome, Sabina & Giacinto

Grilled sawara (fish)

Isabelle's sunomono; sweet vinegar souced salad
The photos by Giacinto

Here is a letter with a photo from Sini in Finland
Sini's okonomiyaki

Hi Emi-san,
I want to thank you yet again for the wonderful cooking lessons.
I and my brother, Joni and Kati have been trying to cook Japanese food in Finland.

I'm sending couple pictures for you to see how we have managed to cook Japapese food.

Japanese food is the best in the world! I'm especially missing tsukemono, yatsuhashi and sashimi. ^^

Have a nice summer.
Yours,
Sini

Nukazuke: bran-bed pickled vegetables
My favourite!

　　　　bran bed ↑

Satsuki : Month of Irises and wisterias

2010-05-01T00:06:00.094+09:00

Uzuki in satsuki; May
flower: shobu, that is for Tango no Settuku
(originally an old celebration for boys, to wish their vital growth, held on May 5th)
Kashiwa-mochi: Tango no Settuku sweet; wrapped with an oak leaf, as it is believed that oak leaves don't wither

If you like, please visit my website as well
kyotouzuki.com
Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Wisterias in my neighborhood

Arlene, Lily, Sheila and Dii

Karlijn is making mottusou-gohan; molded rice

Ippolita & Robert, Sarah & Giordan

Sarah is serving 'Goma-yogoshi'

'Goma-yogoshi' : sesame dressed ingen/beans & mitsuba leaves

Ippolita is cutting nasu; aubergine/eggplant

Cora, Mike, Sebastian & Genevieve

Agedashi dofu by Abby →

Abby - the photos by David Malbin

Isabelle is making 'sunomono' (souced salad)

Sabina is making soboro-an (Japanese kind of meat-sauce/salsa bolognese?)

Soboro-an: ground meat sauce
stirring quickly with chopsticks

on the right: green peas & shiitake mushrooms with soboro-an
on the left: sunomono;souced salad of scallops, cucumbers and myogo(ginger buds)

Capucine is delighted with her perfect nori(seaweed)-roll!

Leda is making sesame dressed salad.

She's very good at making omusubi/rice balls as well!

Capucine's cute dessert

She's enjoying making dessert!

Lisa, Michael and Mitsu

A taste of spring : Takenoko

2010-04-11T00:15:00.030+09:00

on the right: takenoko(bamboo shoots) & koya-dofu(freeze-dried tofu!) light simmered with dashi(broth)

If you like, please visit my website as well
kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Katie & Katie and Laurel's spring meal

A Kyoto spring special:takenoko(bamboo shoots)

Richard, Sumiko and Joanne
They tried 2 kinds of takenoko dishes; takenoko simmered with broth and deep-fried takenoko with minced prawns.

Simmering takenoko and fuki

Lexi, Helen and Sebastian

Susie & Brad, Marie-Helene & Etienne

Katie is cutting koya-dofu

Katie is making sakura/cherry blossoms with radish

Laurel is grilling Shiitake mushrooms

Kyoto in pastel pink

2010-04-01T00:16:00.051+09:00

Uzuki in uzuki; April

Drooping cherry tree at Senbon Shaka-Do

If you like, please visit my website as well
kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Yo-zakura: my neighborhood cherry tree in the evening

Kirsten, Michael
Silke and Mike

Carlos, Saima, Tim and Rakel

Satu & Johani, Jennifer & Andy

strawberry mochi: my original mochi
the pink color comes from fresh strawberry juice.
ingredients:red bean paste, Domyoji mochi rice flour, raw sugar and fresh strawberries

Spring is here! ⅱ

2010-03-27T23:00:00.055+09:00

Louise and Lie　↑

Tessa & Jaap

Emily & Clarence

If you like, please visit my website as well
kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Spring is here! ⅰ

2010-03-01T00:01:00.089+09:00

Uzuki in March
flower: peach blossoms and nanohana; they are for 'Momo no Settuku'on March 3rd.

If you like, please visit my website as well
kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Hinakazari; Tiny hina doll decoration for 'Momo no Settuku'
with the antique rice bowl

Early spring sweets: uguisu mochi
ingredients: shiratama mochi rice flour, sugar, red beans and green soy bean powder
Uguisu is Japanese bush warbler, and we believe this bird tells the coming of spring.
This mochi cake looks like a uguisu in shape & color.
When we have this, we realize 'spring is here'!

Zoe and Kate are making sushi-rice

Grilled tai(sea bream) & namafu(raw wheat gluten) with kinome(sansho baby leaf) miso sauce
from the right Lisa, Chris and Claire

Rebecca & Owen, Sarah & Ben

Spring rice: clam & green pea rice

Michelle & Tuffer are enjoying the Kyoto spring dishes

Carolyn & Chris are enjoying Kyoto vegetable salad

Konstantin is trying his favourite, chawanmushi; savory egg custard

Ryan is cutting onions, Chris is watching him!

Chris & Matthew with their chirashi-zushi

Alexa & Tom with their chirashi-zushi　　

It might as well be spring

2010-02-04T12:07:00.038+09:00

Uzuki showcase in Kisaragi;February

If you like, please visit my website as well
kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

February 3rd is called 'Setsubun', by the Japanese lunar calendar
'Setsubun' is the division between winter and spring. February 3rd is the day before the beginning of spring, and February 4th is the beginning of spring. Although it is still cold during February in Kyoto, the spring is coming soon, I believe!

Ngoc is making 'tai no yubamaki': soy milk skin roll with seabream

Quyen is making Kyoto shiro miso soup

Praveen is cutting lotus root, he loves lotus root chips very much

Kyoto specialty, yuba(soy-milk skin), its taste is really mild and delicate just like a gentle spring breeze!

Making yuba(soy milk skin)

This way is easy, just you need to get pure, non-additive soy-milk.
　　　　　　　　↓

Fresh yuba sashimi!

Alex & Sam →
They love Kyoto style winter miso soup

Dessert soup?!
O-zenzai & o-shiruko

O-zenzai

O-shiruko →

Christine loves shiratama-dango, Maduma likes o-zenzai!

Kyoto winters are described as ‘freezing coldness’ or ‘Kyo no sokobie’ in Japanese. I feel very much like a hot, sweet soup, o-zenzai or o-shiruko on such cold nights.

Zenzai and shiruko are kind of soup style sweets, not like the usual soup, azuki (red beans) is used with some sugar for both of them and they are served with toasted mochi (pounded rice cakes). Zenzai looks like a bean soup, shiruko more like a thick potage soup as the simmered red beans are sieved so it has a smooth texture.

Azuki has long been the basic ingredient for traditional Japanese sweets and the combination with mochi rice cake is very basic. In ancient time people believed that azuki was the charm that protected them from disease. Actually azuki has been proven to ease tiredness.

We sometimes ask each other, “Which do you like, o-zenzai or o-shiruko?” as they are quite different, despite the fact that the same ingredients are used in both.
When I’m asked, my answer is “I love both. I can’t choose one because both are delicious!”
Have a bowl and warm you on a freezing cold day!

Lisa, Zoe and Michael; they all love Kyoto vegetables and tofu(soy bean) products
Lisa is cutting daikon radish and Kintoki carrot　　↑

Zoe is making agedashi dofu　　↑

And now she's going to have it! 　　↑

Michael is making yuba(soy milk skin/tofu film)-roll!

Winter grilled fish - buri no yuzu yaki:
grilled yellowtail yuzu(citrus) flavored

Lucy and Marcus say Japanese fish/seafoods are so fresh!

Charles & Christina and Karen

Charles'simmered tunip with ground chicken sauce
'Kabura no soboro-an' in Japanese

The three good friends are making a good meal together!
Jorge

Manolo

Miguel

Root vegetables ⅱ: flavors of earth

2010-01-17T23:48:00.075+09:00

kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Fascination for root vegetables!
We have root vegetables a lot during autumn through winter.
They are nutritious and keep us warm!

Furofuki daikon with yuzu miso:
daikon radish with yuzu flavored Kyoto miso sauce
1 boil daikon in rice water

2 simmer daikon with dashi(broth)

3 serve with yuzu miso

Winter Kyo-yasai/vegetable:Kintoki carrot, maru-daikon and mizuna
↓

Winter salad

Beef-roll with burdockroot

Buri-daikon: yellowtail + daikon radish
Typical winter simmered dish, which goes very well with hot sake(rice wine)!

Homemade Senmai-zuke: Pickled turnip, Kyoto winter specialty

Frances & Jazza

Here is misozuke; miso pickled fish or meat,
my favorite winter grilled dish! As Kyoto style miso (soy bean paste) is used, this has mild & sweet flavors.

Buri no misozuke : miso pickled and grilled yellowtail

gyuniku no misozuke -- marinade beef fillets with Kyoto style miso and sweet rice wine for a couple of days

Sawara no miso & kasu zuke -- Kyoto miso + sake kasu(sake lees) pickled sawara(fish)

Love for Kintoki carrot!
Since I was small, Kyoto kintoki carrot has been my favorite.

Kintoki carrot cake

Kintoki carrot & apple jam

Kintoki carrot mochi balls with red bean paste, apple compote and soy bean powder

A Happy New Year 2010!

2010-01-01T00:03:00.084+09:00

Uzuki on New Year's, 2010

'A Happy New Year' to you all!
Wishing you all good health & happiness in 2010.
And I do hope this year brings peace all over the world!

I'm looking forward to having cooking sessions with you this year!
Sharing an enjoyable time together is wonderful!

If you like, please visit the website as well
kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

3 kinds of 'iwai zakana'

Ikura no mizore-ae; red caviar with grated daikon radish

Sekihan : Cooked rice with red beans
We make this for celebrations

Dani & Inga, Claire & Ewan

Alison & Fergus, Lizzy & Catherine

seven herbs-seri:water dropwort, nazuna:shepherd's purse, gogyo:cudweed, hakobera:chickweed,hotokenoza:henbit, suzuna:turnip and suzushiro:daikon radish

nanakusa-gayu:rice gruel with seven herbs

On Jan. 7th traditionally we have this seven herb rice gruel to wish our health throughout this year.

Thank you so much ⅲ

2009-12-27T21:59:00.043+09:00

Thank you so much for visiting my cooking class this year;
I'm so glad I could have wonderful time with all of you in my kitchen!

Here are some photos from among the attendants.
I'm so sorry, I can't put all of them.

If you like, please visit my website as well
kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

camellia; wabisuke

Hester & Rudolf and Emi

Miwako, Diana and Farhad are enjoying Kyoto style New Year's soup a little early!

Liz & Eric ↑

Rachael & Nathan's collaboration dish: Beef-roll
with burdockroot; kind of a modern New Year's dish

Maria& Anthony

Maria, Chris, Julien
and Etienne

Kimbra & Rod,
Ngan & Kevin

Julia & Simon,
Sophie & James

Joyce and Lucy
Jessie and Paris

from the left
Nick, Luke, Tim and Jonus

Kim →

Monica

Renee & Oliver

Seanancey, Francine and Dan

Shannon & David

Thank you so much ⅱ

2009-12-27T19:48:00.019+09:00

Thank you so much for visiting my cooking class this year;
I'm so glad I could have wonderful time with all of you in my kitchen!

Here are some photos from among the attendants.
I'm so sorry, I can't put all of them.

If you like, please visit my website as well
kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Yuzu (citrus)

Sylvia, Joe and Kristine

Theryl, Nicky and Matt

Violetta, Michael, Ali and Blake

Vincent, Nadege,
Johann and Angela

Velerie & Jeff and Diane

Karen & Craig

Magda & Jakub

Lynne & Andy

Karen & Scott, Lucie & Johannes

Adam's special 'O-konomiyaki'
Chris is shaving Katsuobushi;dried bonito(fish)

Kat & Joe　　→

Lauren

Darcy, Michael and Peggy

Christina, Joost and Nick

Barbara & John

Ayelet, Maxine and Stefan

Thank you so much ⅰ

2009-12-23T21:33:00.049+09:00

Thank you so much for visiting my cooking class this year;
I'm so glad I could have wonderful time with all of you in my kitchen!

Here are some photos from among the attendants.
I'm so sorry, I can't put all of them.

If you like, please visit my website as well
kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Winter Kinton(sweet): awayuki;light snow
ingredients: white beans, yamato imo(yam potato) and sugar

Penny loves Japanese sweets; wagashi very much!

Lisa & Jeremy, Deborah & Sammy

Sara & Heikki

Mann family ↑

Annekatrin & Robert

Ann & Stuart, Liz & Katie

Amalia & Shimon

Alexina & Elizabeth, Jenny & Sabin

Alex & Matt

Iranz, Diana, Estela, Christina and Carmen

Gill & Jenny

Eugenia & Alex, Monique & Vincent

Emma & Dale

Root vegetables ⅰ: flavors of earth

2009-12-06T22:52:00.044+09:00

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Uzuki in Shiwasu;last month of the year

Home-made senmai-zuke : Senmai-zuke a la Uzuki
Senmai-zuke is Kyoto winter pickled kabu;turnip
Famous special shops' senmai-zuke is very nice, but expensive.
So I make it myself!

Hiryozu : Deep-fried tofu ball
This is originally from shojin ryori; temple foods

Monica and David

Renkon-mushi: steamed lotus root dish
with some fish and vegetables

Autumn-Winter ingredietns
clockwise, the top - lotus root,
sudachi(citrus) and yuzu(citrus)
the center - ginkgo nuts

Renkon, lotus root is a mystic vegetable to me.
Maybe this comes from the image of the lotus flower, a symbol of Buddha, a symbol of purity and Buddha is sitting on the flower. What an interesting plant! The noble flower is floating on the swamp, the root grows in the mud below the water’s surface.

Since I was a child renkon has been one of my favorite vegetables.
I love its decent flavor, crunchy texture and its pretty pattern when they are cut in round slices. Lotus roots savor of the earth, I feel somehow. They are nourishing, contain Vitamin C, dietary fiber etc.

They suit various recipes, such as sweet vinegar marinated, deep-fried, and simmered. Also grated lotus root is the wonderful ingredient for a winter steamed dish ‘renkon-mushi‘, deep-fried lotus balls etc..

For the Japanese, renkon is a special vegetable and an essential ingredient for New Year foods called Osechi-ryori as well.

Fuyu no o-bento : winter boxed meal

Phoebe and Marte are happy with their special o-bento

Shimotsuki : Month of Frost

2009-11-01T20:15:00.070+09:00

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Uzuki showcase in Shimotsuki;November

kabura-mushi: steamed turnip with amber sauce

Alyssa, her mom and dad, Karin & Helmut

5401340135116464322" /> Kyoto traditional Dengaku : grilled namafu & scallops with Kyoto style miso sauce
Their dengaku looks cute!

Marie Therese loves Japanese vegan dishes
She is showing Japanese 'kudzu' starch, which she likes very much!

Inoko-mochi:Shimotsuki(November)special mochi-rice cake

November is considered the first month of the year in Japanese tea ceremony.

Camille is cutting kaki; persimmon

Fabrice is cracking ginkgo nut shells; it's hard work!

Diana is roasting ginkgo nuts 　　 ↑

Autumn flavor from the mountains and sea

2009-10-11T01:00:00.136+09:00

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

In Japanese/Kyoto cuisine, the combination of ingredients in each dish is one of the most important elements. As Japan is blessed with nature, we have a large variety of ingredients both from the mountains and sea. We like to find and enjoy the best possible combination of seasonal fish/seafood (or meat) with vegetables (or seaweed). We call it ‘umi no sachi ‘ (blessing from the sea) and ‘yama no sachi’ (blessing from the mountains) in Japanese.

In October what you must not miss is the combination of matsutake and hamo.
Matsutake is a mushroom that has an elegant flavor, particularly the ones grown in Kyoto. They are quite expensive, though. (So not necessarily the ones grown in Kyoto) Hamo is a fish that also has a very good but modest flavor, thus doesn’t compete or interfere with matsutake’s wonderful flavor. Hamo's season will end soon; please hasten to it!

Dobin-mushi of matsutake & hamo

'Dobin-mushi' is a Kyoto autumn special; kind of a clear soup dish. Using a tiny pottery tea-pot, we cook it and we drink the soup in tiny sake cup

Matsutake mushroom

Michelle & Matt's autumn lunch

Chu-lain's autumn menu

Simmered taro potatoes with prawn amber sauce

For meat-lovers: taro with ground chicken sauce

Aline is happy with the autumn cocktail

Another combination from the mountains and sea:
Nagaimo yam(potato) and fresh tuna(fish) cocktail

Shiitake mushroom and prawn tempura

Ania is chopping prawns
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　

Ula is finishing minced prawn

Yonatan is filling minced prawn in undersides of shiitake mushrooms

Matsutake gohan : cooked rice with matsutake mushroom

Shimeji gohan : cooked rice with shimeji
Shimeji is other kind of mushroom

Topping-ginkgo nuts

One class : fish・fish・fish

O-sashimi: raw fish dish with wasabi

Sushi and grilled fish

They're working hard!
Anneke 　　　 ↑
Ana　　　　　　↑
Pere　　　　　↑

In the moonlit night

2009-10-02T20:48:00.061+09:00

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Uzuki showcase in the moonlight

By the old lunar calendar it is considered that the most beautiful full moon appears in the mid-autumn. This year tomorrow, on the evening of Oct. 3rd we'll be able to appreciate it. We Japanese love the moon viewing very much. When we have the full moon viewing in autumn, o-dango(tiny dumplings of rice cake) and some seasonal ingredients, like sato-imo(taro potatoes), kuri(chestnuts) and autumn fruits such as grapes etc. are offered with pampas grass to the moon.
Hoping to have a moonlit night tomorrow!

O-dango: tiny dumplings with a rabbit!
As we have an old folk-tale that rabbits live on the moon and pound rice cakes.

Here is o-dango with grapes & red bean paste
Sue
Tom
Laura

Shungiku-dango: dumplings of 'shungiku' green leaves with red bean paste

Alexandra and Phoebe with their kinton & a bowl of matcha; powder green tea

Shira-ae: tofu dressed salad
Traditional style - dried shiitake mushroom, lotus root and Kyoto carrot

Fruity one - kaki(persimmon) and green beans

Kuri-Kinton : An autumn speciality!

2009-09-26T23:05:00.013+09:00

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

When I think of autumn foods, kuri (chestnuts) comes to mind first.
It’s hard work to remove the burr, outside skin and inner skin.
But during the work, when I start imagining the tasty cooked chestnuts with the nice flavor, the preparation pain disappears immediately.　
To me, a Kyoto person chestnuts are a gift from autumn, or from nature, it seems.
After enduring Kyoto's hot and muggy summer, we are given a wonderful gift from nature: autumn and chestnuts.
Many people in the old days and today, too enjoy collecting chestnuts at chestnut groves in the countryside.
Although chestnuts are on sale at the market in season, it's more fun to gather chestnuts on our own and cook them.

During the chestnut season I make kuri gohan (rice cooked with chestnuts),
simmered chestnuts with chicken, healthy sweets and so on.
If there is just one chestnut dish on the table, the meal with it would become special, a celebration of autumn!

There are some kinds of kuri sweets, my fovorite is 'kuri-kinton'.
It's simple to make this sweet - Steam or boil chestnuts without removing skins, scoop out the inside, add some sugar to it and mix it. Please enjoy simply the taste and flavour of chestnuts and autumn!

Kuri-kinton

Kuri-kinton wrapped with Uzuki-paper!

Delicious exchange!

2009-09-25T00:21:00.012+09:00

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

The attendants and I often exchange recipes.
I'm so glad I can get a lot of delicious recipes from all over the world.
I really appreciate this fabulous opportunity!

Here is an attendant, Micaela from Parma, Italy. She also opens a cooking class at home in Parma. She gave me a very good recipe of gnocchi, which her grandma taught her. I introduced 'dashi'(broth) of katsuobushi(fish flakes) and combu(seaweed) to her. We cooked natsu-yasai no nimono; simmered summer vegetables with dashi together.

Lovely! Good recipes are handed down from generation to generation, and now we exchange them. This is a preferable globalization!

Micaela and Emi

Listen to autumn flavours!

2009-09-11T22:26:00.015+09:00

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Here are Autumn vegetarian dishes, but Kyoto people
have these as usual dishes in autumn.
We appreciate fresh ingredient's flavour,
don't use a lot of seasonings not to destroy their natural
flavours.
A Japanese word, 'kiki-zake' is listening to sake(wine);
'kiki-zake' means sake(wine)-tasting in English. Enjoying ingredients'flavours is
listening to their sweet voices, or their whispers, I feel!

Top-right: simmered yuba(soy-milk skin) & taro potato
with vegetable sauce

Kuri-gohan:
Chestnut rice

Aki no shira-ae:
Autumn salad with thick tofu dressing
shimeji mushroom, Japanese pear and green bean

Yaki-nasu no miso shiru:
Miso soup with grilled eggplant(aubergine)
Garnish: myoga

Kristen and her mom, Geraldine
They love shojin-ryori: Japanese vegetarian dishes

Kiku no Settuku : Month of Chrysanthemum

2009-09-01T00:27:00.034+09:00

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Uzuki showcase in September
flower: hototogisu,kin-mizuhiki and chrysanthemum

Maaike and Robbert

Robbert loves this Japanese beef dish: sweet soysauce flavoured beef with burdock root!
Ginger or sansho(kind of pepper) can be very good accent for this.

Today I'll introduce 2 dishes. The first one is Japanese style simmered beef with burdock root; gobou in Japanese.
As you know, we started having beef around 130-40 years ago, when Japan started having westernization. When we use meat as an ingredient, we cook it, thinking of being well-balanced and well-matched;usually we cook meat with vegetables which go well with it. Beef matches well with burdock root, duck or chicken go well with negi(a little similar to leek).

Burdock is my favourite root vegetable! I love its earthy, mild flavour and the crispy texture. It contains dietary fibers a lot.

Elissa and Paul

This is Paul's special inside-out sushi roll!

The second dish is inside-out sushi roll.
Usually nori(seaweed)-sheet comes outside, but this roll is different, sushi-rice comes outside.

Hazuki; in the hot month

2009-08-01T00:08:00.156+09:00

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Uzuki showcase in August
flower : hangeshou

Hiyashi chawan-mushi: cold savory egg custard

Marie and Nico are 'In Warermelon Sugar'!
dumplings & watermelons with red bean paste

Ingen no goma-ae: sesame dressed bean salad

Silvia & Carlos are making 'ingen no goma-ae'

Watermelon & tofu ice-cream
dairy product free dessert
Sudachi(citrus)zest for topping

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　

Anna and Fredrik

↑
Erin is parching sesame seeds　　　　　　　
We have to be careful as they easily get overcooked!

Marie's 'kamonasu no dengaku'

Yoichi & David's collaboration:
sesame vinegared cucumber salad

Yoichi

David

Hamo-kyu:Kyoto summer salad dish
Sweet vinegared salad of hamo(fish) & cucumber

Dashimaki:Kyoto style egg-roll
This egg-roll is quite soft with dashi(broth)

Here is the word from Lidiana--
Cooking with Emi was one of the most interesting parts of my trip to Japan! Emi is very friendly and hospitable and she makes you feel like a friend that has come over for lunch, not just a student in a class. While we cooked, conversation flowed and good times were had!
Thanks for everything!
Lidi

Lidiana(←) and Laura(↓)are making dashimaki

Gion Matsuri : Hamo Matsuri

2009-07-09T22:36:00.094+09:00

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

We have the dishes using hamo(fish) during Gion Festival!

Here are some hamo lovers and hamo dishes.

Sini is making her favourite hamo-zushi

Sansho peppers can be a good accent for hamo-zushi

Bianca is happy with her 'hamo no teriyaki';grilled hamo fish

Yuba-roll of hamo

From the left, Rebecca & Peter and Yvette
They love yuba-roll!

My summertime kimono

O-sekihan: cooked rice with red beans
When we celebrate something, like wedding, birthday, festival, we make o-sekihan.

　　　
A couple of kinds of vegetarian sushi by Katie, Nina, Nick and Mary Anne

Tanabata : the star-lit night

2009-07-07T00:46:00.041+09:00

Uzuki showcase in July
flower : kikyou

Tanabata, the Star Festival is celebrated on July 7th, which is from one of the ancient Chinese legends originally--on the Milky Way the two stars have the once-a-year rendezvour on July 7th, but if it rains that night, they are not able to meet. Wising for the star-lit night.......

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Kamo-nasu no Agedashi : Deep-fried Kamo-nasu with hot (broth) soup
Garnish- grated daikon raddish & cucumber and myoga (ginger bud)

Kamo-nasu is the Kyoto eggplant (aubergine).
During the summer Kyoto people enjoy this special eggplant very much.
Its shape is chubby and perfectly round, looks like a ball, 10-15cms in diameter.
It is quite heavy with its thick flesh, the big ones can weigh up to 800g! Its texture is fresh and smooth. The skin color is dark purple and feels velvety.

In summer it is very hot, here in Kyoto and Kamo-nasu grows well in the sun. While eggplants can help to reduce the temperature of the body; they keep us cool! Deep-fried Kamo-nasu is not greasy as it doesn't absorb much oil because of its high dense. They are healthy, tasty and please us with the noble color and the dignified shape.

Dengaku; fried Kamo-nasu dressed with Kyoto miso (soybean paste) and Agedashi;
deep-fried Kamo-nasu with hot broth (soup) are both popular summer dishes.

Nagoshi no Harae : Summer Purification

2009-06-30T00:30:00.027+09:00

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Since the old time, on the last day of the first half of the year (the last day of June) we have a purification ceremony at shrines in Kyoto.
This is called ’Nagoshi no Harae’ (summer purification).
We visit the shrine to purify every bad thing in the first half of the year and to pray for happiness and good health during the rest half of the year.

Chi-no-wa at Okazaki Shrine, my favourite shrine, here is really quiet
We pass through this big ring and pray.

Thank you so much ⅲ

2009-06-26T19:26:00.061+09:00

I thank you, all the attendants so much this first half of the year.
I had a very enjoyable time with them each class.
Here are some photos from among the attendants.
So sorry I couldn't put all the attendants.

I'm looking forward to having a cooking session with you, too!

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Olivia(seven years old) is decorating her 'molded-sushi' beautifully

And she's enjoying it!

Alex(five years old), who is the youngest chef in my class, is cracking & beating eggs very well!

Ginny, Bruce and James

Nancy, Ron and Maria

Barbara and Aimee

Isabel, Javi and Marta

Nicole and Noah

Michelle and Brian

Jeremy, Bridget, Byron,
Justin and Sophie

Jo-Anne and Brendan

Jean and Betty

Jennifer and Roz

Thank you so much ⅱ

2009-06-26T11:30:00.052+09:00

I thank you, all the attendants so much this first half of the year.
I had a very good time with them.
Here are just some photos from among the attendants.

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Ragnhild and Yumi

Tim and Tim

Renae and Catherine

Elizabeth & Lillian
and Meagan

Petra & Jerome
and Steph

Jean and Graham

Sinead and Jean

Camila
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　She loves 'shojin-ryori'- Japanese vegetarian cuisine; temple foods very much 　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　

Frederic, Stephane,
Guy-Antoine and Sophie
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　

Thank you so much ⅰ

2009-06-25T22:58:00.078+09:00

I thank you, all the attendants so much this first half of the year.
Here are just some photos from among the attendants.
I'm looking forward to having a cooking session with you!!

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Navid

Ella and Jan

Amy and Annie are making basic broth; dashi
Elaine is cutting yuba(soy-milk skin)

Emily and Brian

Susan and Nicole

Laura, Caroline and Alex

　　
　　　　　　 Ryan is good at 'usu-zukuri'(thin-slicing of sashimi)

　←　Cecilia & Paul

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　↑
　　　　　　　　　　　Camile & Justin, who are good at cooking, with their mom and dad

Minazuki : In rainy June

2009-06-01T22:17:00.061+09:00

Please visit my website as well
kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Minazuki is the old name for June,
to be precise, the sixth month of the lunar calendar.
Minazuki means month of water.
I love the old Japanese month-names, they are poetic.
by contrast, the modern month-names are not interesting;
just numbers are used!

Uzuki showcase in minazuki;June
flower: hydrangea

I've just made this year's umeshu
I use a little yellowish, bigger ume fruits,'nankoubai'.

This is 2nd year's
↓

Umeshu:sweet plum wine - Have a glass of cold umeshu
and you'll feel cool & fresh!

Ume is Japanese plum (or apricot).
ume tree gets in fruits in June. Also we have the rainy season
in June. I love viewing the wet and glistening ume fruits in the quiet rain.

Usually ume fruit is not sweet, not juicy, we seldom eat the fresh ones, but when they are cooked, they're tasty. The most typical ume food is umeboshi(pickled ume), which is very good for rice balls. And umeboshi has an antiseptic effect, so rice balls with umeboshi are good for packed lunch; it keeps them fresh. My grandma's umeboshi was very tasty. Although I try to make umeboshi, I haven't made the same good one yet, so far.

I make umeshu; sweet plum wine every year. It's not difficult to make; simply you put some young ume and rock sugar into Japanese sake(rice wine). But it's a kind of slow drink! You have to wait for about one year at shortest to have it.
The flavor of umeshu is very nice, and by aging its taste gets better. In the evening, after taking a bath, wearing yukata(summertime cotton kimono) I love to have cold umeshu. It makes me feel cool and fresh quickly. Umeshu can be a kind of dessert wine as well.
But I shouldn't have much! In The Tale of Genji Genji says, “Music, Poetry and Sake (Wine) are the three friends of the life, but, unlike the other two, one is not always a good friend.”

This is a bonus!
You can make compote of ume
using the ume of umeshu.

Early summer dish: Zaru udon; udon-noodles with seasonal vegetables & herbs

Early summer sweet:
Shiratama dumplings with amanatsu(a kind of summer orange) and
red bean paste.

Susan & Sven
soba(buck-wheat noodles)lovers

Today's soba is with stuffed Kyoto-green peppers (Kyoto green peppers are not hot)

Verdurous Season

2009-05-22T10:59:00.014+09:00

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Here is an elegant sweet, May special kinton.

Kinton: verdure
ingredients: white beans, broad beans and sugar

　←
This is my sweet-making textbook, a quite old book that was written by a famous sweet shop's owner-chef about 50 years ago!
　　　 ↓

Kelsey's kinton : wisteria
Looks pretty!

Kelsey & Joe are making right now!

Lynn & Wing

← fuki & prawn 　
　　　　　
with thick tofu dressing

Wing's 'tai no kinome yaki' Grilled sea bream with kinome miso sauce

His decoration looks like a French dish!

Nukazuke,a kind of tsukemono(pickles):
rice bran (bed) pickled vegetables
I suppose nukazuke is the best tsukemono during the spring and summer, there is a large variety of pickles, though.

Put some vegetables into the bran bed

Make your home a lovely ' izakaya ' !

2009-05-20T00:37:00.031+09:00

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Izakaya is the Japanese casual-style bar, there you can enjoy a lot of dishes with drink.
Here are popular izakaya dishes.
Please make your home a lovely izakaya with these dishes and
refresh yourself!

Cucumber & crab meat sweet vinegared salad

Daikon radish salad

Yakitori: Grilled chicken & negi(Japanese kind of leek)

Kinome-ae : The May Duo

2009-05-01T00:04:00.033+09:00

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Uzuki showcase in May
flower:shobu

Takenoko no kinome-ae: kinome dressed bamboo shoots

Kinome are the baby leaves of the sansho or Japanese pepper. We use them as a garnish and as an herb. Now is just the season; we can only enjoy them before the leaves grow too big. Kinome has a distinct flavor and an excellent aroma.

Another special ingredient we have now is takenoko or bamboo shoots. As you might know, bamboo shoots turn into bamboo stalks quickly. So the window of the opportunity is very short, too. The taste of takenoko is plain with the subtle flavor.

Bamboo shoots and kinome have quite different characters each other. They meet in May and make a very good harmony together. Indeed kinome and bamboo shoots are the finest duo of May. We enjoy their duo with many thanks for spring.

Asabori takenoko: new born bamboo shoot

Finest duo of May

Spring flavours!

2009-03-09T20:51:00.034+09:00

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Uzuki showcase in April
on the right : Irabo tea bowl
on the left: sake bottle-shape flower vase
flower : miyako wasure, ko-demari

Fuki no yuba maki : fuki wrapped with soy milk skin

Inga is cutting yuba maki!

In spring please enjoy a little bitter with sweet flavors.
Spring vegetables have all a little
bitter, which is vital energy of buds, sprouts and shoots, which is I feel a breath of spring. Fuki, nanohana;rape blossoms, takenoko; bamboo shoots, udo, broad beans, green peas etc. have their own sweet flavors with subtle bitter.
Kinome (Sansho baby leaves) is the best garnish for spring dishes and udo also has a distinct flavor; they are both aromatic.
Please enjoy these spring specials as the window of opportunity is very short!

Broad beans & spinach salad with thick tofu dressing

Udo is a fragrant plant

Spring vegetables: nanohana,udo and green peas

Kinome: Sansho pepper baby-leaves　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　

Dengaku : grilled namafu with kinome miso paste

Endo-mame gohan : cooked rice with green peas

Christy and Sophia are making molded rice!

Marjo's spring dishes

right- Sarah is preparing fuki
left- Nick is tasting his sushi rolls

Emma & Laura

↓

Emma & Laura
in the Kyoto spring dance,'Miyako Odori' costumes!

Momo no Settuku : Girl's Festival

2009-03-01T00:13:00.023+09:00

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Uzuki showcase
in March

My grandma in law's hand made dolls

We have 'Momo(peach blossoms) no Settuku':the Girl's Festival on March 3rd, which is an old annual festival for girls. We decorate the dolls dressed in old court costumes and wish good health and happiness for girls.

The girls made a sweet, kinton 'Momo'. Theirs look like peach blossoms in full bloom!

Making their specials!

Riri and Kiki's spring chirashi-zushi

In anticipation of Spring arrival

2009-02-01T00:06:00.032+09:00

If you like, please visit my website as well
kyotouzuki.com

Video maker, Mies Heerma made the film of my sweet making class. Please have a look at this!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHtmjkTBpGM

Uzuki showcase in February

By the lunar calendar, February 3rd is called 'Setsubun'.
'Setsubun' is the division between winter and spring, the day before the beginning of spring. And February 4th is the beginning of spring. It is still very cold during February in Kyoto, though. Wishing for spring, in my sweet-making class we make sweets which feel spring in advance.

Berry mochi rice cake

the pink color comes from fresh strawberry juice.
ingredients:red bean paste, Domyoji mochi rice flour, raw sugar and fresh strawberries

sakura mochi; salt pickled cherry blossoms are used, wishing for fresh sakura blossoms

Kyoto sweet, nama-yatsuhashi
ingredients:rice flour, red bean paste, raw sugar, cinnamon powder and soy bean powder

Usually nama yatsuhashi is triangle shaped,
mine is papillote shaped.

Please keep us warm!

2009-01-27T16:29:00.038+09:00

If you like, please visit my website as well
kyotouzuki.com

kabura-mushi:steamed dish of grated turnip with prawn, sea bream, lily root and shiitake mushroom
Before steaming

↓
Served with thick amber sauce and fresh wasabi

chawan-mushi:steamed savory egg custard

It is very cold here, in Kyoto right now,
but it is warm in my kitchen with steaming dishes.
'chawan-mushi'(steamed savory egg custard), 'kabura-mushi'(steamed turnip with some fish and vegetables) and 'renkon-mushi'(steamed lotus root) are some of popular dishes among the attendants. They keep us warm!

Thank you so much!

2008-12-22T21:07:00.076+09:00

If you like, please visit my website as well
kyotouzuki.com

I thank you all so much for visiting my cooking class this year;
I'm so honored to have got all of you in my kitchen.

Wishing you all a very happy New Year and all the best in 2009!
I hope the year 2009 will be full of peace and happiness all over the world.

Winnie and Anthony
Emi

Orion, Lindsay and Emi

Here is the letter from Arnaud & Fabienne --
At the end of the month I am going to make some presentation of our journey in Japan. You already guessed that I'm going to try to cook again the same menu we did in the beginning of october ( I'm sure the autumn salad and the chestnut balls are going to surprise everyone ;o). I'll try my best to do it well and share the experience we had together.I'm really looking foward meeting you again in Kyoto next spring to discover new tastes together! Fabienne

My compliments to the young & cute chefs!

2008-12-11T22:16:00.016+09:00

If you like, please visit my website as well
kyotouzuki.com

Lila (9 years old) and Theo (13 years old)
Their sushi-rolls look so pretty and cute

Jake (14 years old)
His dishes look perfect

Nicholas (15 years old) and Riley (18 years old)
Nicholas's special is grilled chicken 'Yakitori'
Riley cooked a chicken bowl dish, 'Oyako Donburi'

This year I welcomed a lot of young & cute chefs in my kitchen.
That was my pleasure! I was well impressed by them. They all love cooking, enjoy cooking and they are very good at cooking. I feel so happy I could share a wonderful time with them. Here are some of them, I'm very sorry, unfortunateley I can't introduce all of them.

Autumn chirashi-zushi: scattered-sushi

2008-11-27T21:26:00.025+09:00

If you like, please visit my website as well
kyotouzuki.com

Autumn chirashi-zushi
topping: fresh tuna, smolked slamon, sweet vinegared mackerel, ginkgo nuts, Kyoto carrot etc..
This is Robert's autumn chirashi-zushi; scattered sushi, looks stylish!
Chirashi-zushi is my favourite as we can use any seasonal ingredients for this sushi. We enjoy chirashi-zushi through the year, but it can be always new with different ingredients. You can decorate it with your favourite ingredients as you paint, and it shows each season's beauty.

Autumn Tints

2008-11-22T23:07:00.026+09:00

If you like, please visit my website as well
kyotouzuki.com

Uzuki showcase in November

Kyoto is clothed in the autumn tints now. Around my house, in my kitchen and on the plate!
Today's sweets is kinton, I named it 'autumn tints', my original sweets, the colors (orange, red and green) come from Kyoto Kintoki carrot and pumpkin and green soy bean powder.

Basically Japanese sweets are healthier than usual western confectionery; no heavy cream, butter, cheese, eggs...Japanese sweets with vegetables are much healthier, and vegetables bring nice flavors into the sweets, also vegetables' flavor cuts down the amount of sugar in them.
No worry about the chemical ingredients for coloring as well.

This is Kat's 'autumn tints'.

Karin and Alyssa, mom & daughter

Karin & Alyssa's o-bento: autumn boxed meal
So beautiful!

Full of Autumn

2008-10-09T22:24:00.039+09:00

If you like, please visit my website as well
kyotouzuki.com

Uzuki showcase in October
flower: hototogisu and itoguruma

My kitchen is full of autumn now! Some kinds of mushrooms, chestnuts, eggplants, pumpkins, sweet potatoes, grapes, ginkgo nuts, persimmons and some fish etc, they are all giving nice flavours to the dishes visitors and I cook. I feel happy every moment during cooking, I can feel autumn closely. And I thank you very much for everything that brings us such a wonderful time.

Autumn salad-shimeji mushrooms, grapes, mizuna, myoga
with sesame-paste dressing

Lovers of cooking

2008-09-08T18:06:00.019+09:00

If you like, please visit my website as well
kyotouzuki.com

The attendants of my class are all cooking lovers.
Today's chefs are Zak, Arran & Orla.
We cooked Japanese style pork and potato dish,'kakuni' of pork with Japanese taro potatoes.

Lovers of cooking

2008-05-11T22:40:00.033+09:00

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Here are Marjo & Jari from Finland.
They tried sushi-roll and oshizushi,molded sushi. For the dessert matcha, green tea dumplings with red bean paste.

The photos by Jari Puranen

Marjo is trying sushi roll

' Tai no oshizushi ' molded sushi with sea bream

Matcha dumplings with red bean paste
and a bowl of matcha green tea

Julianne

Tatijana

A Taste of Spring

2008-03-19T17:02:00.044+09:00

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Uzuki showcase on a spring evening

Sake-lees & tofu mousse strawberry flavored

Sesame-tofu with soy-milk flavored

Shira-ae of spring chrysanthe-mum

Here are the 3 spring specials. One is Sake lees & tofu mousse strawberry flavored.
The second is sesame tofu soy-milk flavored and the third is thick tofu dressing salad. Tofu makes this sake-lees mousse milder, also soy-milk makes the sesame- tofu lighter. This thick tofu dressing itself has very nice taste, and harmonizes well with the other ingredients as well.
How nice tofu is! The flavor is very good, but not strong, its flavor is mild and modest.
You should enjoy its delicate taste simply. But sometimes you can taste duo or trio
of tofu & other ingredients.
Because tofu can play second string to other ingredients.

The gentle taste of tofu suits spring, I suppose.
In spring it is the dawn that is most beautiful--in the Pillow Book Sei Shonagon writes. I think in spring it is tofu that you can enjoy best.

Cakes a la Kyoto

2008-02-13T22:57:00.029+09:00

Please visit the website- kyotouzuki.com

Today's special is Kyoto style cake using Kyoto kintoki-carrot and tofu.

Kyoto kintoki-carrot cake

Kyoto kintoki-carrot is different from normal orange carrot,
the taste is sweeter & richer and its color is beautiful red!
Tofu is used for the dough, so the texture is softer and the taste is milder.
And tofu-cream for the garnish adds relish to it.
Tofu-cream is healthy, contains high protein, no fat, unlike heavy cream or cream cheese.
This is steamed cake, not baked in the oven.
Today's chefs, Kat and Kristine, they look satisfied with their carrot cake.
They say this carrot cake tastes so different from the normal American carrot cake!

Hello! This is "Uzuki" !

2007-09-25T15:14:00.020+09:00

Hello! This is "Uzuki" from Kyoto, Japan.
I open a Kyoto/Japanese cooking class and tiny pottery gallery/shop at home.
My cooking class is held in my kitchen; a semi-private, friendly, at-home atmosphere class.
I love cooking and Kyoto food.
In my class I introduce Kyoto cuisine a lot as I and my parents, grandparents, great gandparents... all Kyoto people.
On this blog I'll write what is going on in my kitchen with the photos of attendants and dishes we've cooked. And I'll write about Kyoto/Japanese food with its cultural climate.
I'm looking forward to seeing you. Let's have a cooking session together!

At the gallery shop, I show Shigeru Hirayama's and some pottery artists' works; exquisite tea bowls, water jars for the tea ceremony, modern flower vases, authentic sake bottles,cups etc.. Please visit here and find your favourite pottery!
If you are interested, please visit my website http://kyotouzuki.com

Here are a couple of photos : Becca, Meaghan and Abigail from Global College